The invention relates to a wheel carrier for transporting a building structure such as a mobile home over the highways.
Manufactured housing prices are steadily increasing, as with other markets; however, one major built-in cost to the home is the cost of axle/wheel assemblies. Generally the wheels are removed when the home is placed on its foundation blocks. If the wheels and axles are to be removed, then the labor cost of doing so is built into the home price.
Under new Department of Transportation rules, there is an industry need to increase the number of axles under a transported building structure. The weight of the home determines how many axles will be used.
With the bogie wheel carrier described herein, the manufacturing plant for the building structure will not have to mount any axles to the chassis. No tires and wheels will have to be mounted to the chassis. The reusable bogie wheel carrier can be installed on the floor as the structure is being built or can be placed at the end of the assembly line where the building structure can be lifted and lowered on the carrier for transport. The building structure can be quickly separated from the bogie wheel carrier so the structure can be lowered onto its foundation blocks.
The manufacturer can then arrange to bring the bogie wheel carrier back for reuse. In addition, because the carrier is relatively compact in length, generally about 20 feet long, not counting the tongue or the hitch, it can be returned using a pick-up truck. If several structures were transported in a certain region, the bogie wheel carrier can be stacked with other bogie wheel carriers for return transport to the factory. It is anticipated that up to four carriers can be returned together. The bogie wheel carrier can typically accommodate up to five axle/wheel assemblies. Because a return trip to the factory would not require the need for five sets of wheels, selective wheels can be removed, so the carrier can be transported using a pick-up truck with minimal drag from the carrier.
For extremely long building structures, two underlying bogie wheel carriers can be used in tandem to transport the building structure to the home site. According to current prices, it is estimated that approximately $1400.00 can be saved off the cost of a typical mobile home.
The invention is hereafter described in more detail.